


Something Better

by Aifrit



Series: Voidstrike Drabbles [11]
Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Couch Cuddles, Cuddling & Snuggling, Cute, Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, F/F, Flowers, Fluff, Lesbian Character, Love Languages, Pansexual Character, Voidstrike, acts of service
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25046269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aifrit/pseuds/Aifrit
Summary: Wraith's eyes fly open, her pulse quickening as a curt knock raps on her front door. The Voices are loud and confusing, some rambling about answering, others hissing at her to take her time while getting up. Her head pounds, though, and the knocking doesn't make it any better.When she glances at the living room window, she sees bright rays of sunshine peeking through the curtains. It's… morning? How long did she sleep?
Relationships: Bangalore | Anita Williams/Wraith | Renee Blasey, Past Mirage | Elliott Witt/Wraith | Renee Blasey
Series: Voidstrike Drabbles [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1776784
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	Something Better

**Author's Note:**

> Title: Something Better  
> Pairing: Bangalore/Wraith (Voidstrike)  
> Rating: T for language  
> Words: 2465  
> Prompt Request: "Anita surprising Renee with flowers."
> 
> A/N: Another thing I wrote on Tumblr. Enjoy!

Wraith's eyes fly open, her pulse quickening as a curt knock raps on her front door. The Voices are loud and confusing, some rambling about answering, others hissing at her to take her time while getting up. Her head _pounds_ , though, and the knocking doesn't make it any better.

When she glances at the living room window, she sees bright rays of sunshine peeking through the curtains. It's… morning? How long did she sleep?

Another knock, lighter, raps at her door.

"Who is it?" Wraith asks, her raspy voice surprising even her.

"It's me, Renee."

She immediately recognizes the confident voice. And… no one _else_ calls her by her name, so…

Wraith holds her head as the Voices die down to a whisper. She huffs. "Come in."

"Uh, I would, but… I forgot the key you gave me. Sorry."

"Fuuuuck," she whispers.

As she moves to rise from the couch, her arm and leg muscles scream at her to stop. The burning and aching is so intense that she _does_ stop and curses the heavens. When she gathers herself, she tries again, and as she stands on wobbly knees, the room spins around her, and she screws her eyes shut to center herself. It takes some time before her brain catches up. When she takes one step forward, she recoils as her toe taps a discarded takeout box. Forgot that was there.

"Wraith? You good?"

She finally inspects her coffee table full of more empty boxes and plastic bags with sauce in them. It's starting to smell. Disgusting.

"Yeah. Coming."

When she hobbles to the front door, it finally hits her that she's _just_ woken up, hasn't showered, hasn't brushed her teeth or anything. How on Solace is she supposed to show herself like this? To _Anita_ , of all people?

She unlocks and opens the door to see Anita standing there.

The taller woman gazes down at her as a gentle half-smile graces her lips. "Hey. Got you these." She brings a hand up to show a bouquet of flowers wrapped in decorative, crinkly plastic. They're purple - well, _lavender_ , mostly - and smell like they've just been freshly cut. "I, uh- I know you don't really do the whole flower thing so don't feel like you need to keep 'em. Just needed a way to get through the bodyguard in the lobby."

Wraith bites the corner of her bottom lip. It's hard not to smile at Anita's ploy to get past security. She imagines Anita sweet-talking her way past an Apex Games official. Despite her tough, militant demeanor, the woman's a natural charmer. It shows; not many can convince a bodyguard to step aside. They're a bunch of no-nonsense hardasses for good reason.

Regardless, Wraith doesn't find herself hating the bouquet. She's seen the type before - purple peonies - and though she isn't well-versed in flowers, she knows the bundle must have cost a pretty penny. All the more reason to appreciate Anita's adamance and care.

Wraith invites her in and she closes and locks the door behind them. "Sorry for the mess," she starts and lowers herself back onto the couch.

Anita kicks off her shoes, ambling into the kitchen. "Don't worry about it." She rummages through cupboards to pull out a water pitcher that she examines. "How you feelin' now? You stopped answering my texts yesterday. Got worried."

Wraith fishes around for her phone and picks it up, and, sure enough, there's five missed texts from Anita, two from Natalie, and fourteen from Elliott. Unsurprising. The last text from Anita, sent just after 5:45, states that she'd be over to check on her in the morning. Wraith must have fallen asleep sometime before that.

She stretches out on the couch and raises one leg. "Like dogshit. Worse than yesterday if I'm being honest."

"Mm. How long did you sleep?" Anita fills the pitcher with water and sets the flowers inside before she ambles to sit in the center of the couch, lifting Wraith's legs to rest in her lap.

Wraith checks the time. It's only after 8:20 AM. "Fifteen hours, I guess? I don't think I woke up at all." She sets her phone down.

Anita whistles. She looks around the couch, and Wraith can feel the embarrassment mar her cheeks at the mess of boxes and leftover food on and around the coffee table. She doesn't say anything about it, just runs her hand up and down Wraith's shin.

"Not too far off from what the Doc said, right? Don't feel bad about it."

Collapsing in the respawn chamber after yesterday morning's match was the absolute highlight of her week. The next thing she knew, she woke up in a hospital bed with a doctor shining the world's brightest flashlight in her eyes. The diagnosis? Fatigue. The doctor discharged her and told her to get some rest for a few days, but to not be alarmed if she slept more than twelve hours. Anita helped her back home and left her to rest. At some point, food was delivered (probably courtesy of Anita, Wraith can't remember), and she passed out for fifteen hours.

Anita is right, though. She shouldn't feel bad about it, but she still feels kind of gross at the mess.

Anita takes another glance at the table and floor. "You hungry? Shit's been sitting out all night. Doubt it's any good. Besides, when was the last time you had a nice breakfast?"

Wraith lies back on the pillow resting on the couch arm, one forearm resting across her face. "Please don't make me get up."

"Mm, mm. Talkin' about ordering. I'll get delivery from that one breakfast place you like. In the meantime…" she says, patting Wraith's leg. "Go shower and change. You look miserable."

The thought of even moving from her spot makes her muscles ache and head spin. Wraith whines in protest. It's uncharacteristic and petulant, but she doesn't care in the slightest. Anything is better than _moving_ right now.

She flinches at the light tickle on the sole of her foot and moves her arm from her face.

"You'll feel better afterwards. Don't make me drag you in there."

"Fine," Wraith grumbles. She gathers all the strength she can muster to remove herself from the couch.

"Hey." Anita grabs her hand before she passes, rubs circles with her thumbs. "Take as long as you want, all right? I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. I'll be here when you're out. Just let me know if you need anything."

It's times like this where Wraith feels like she doesn't deserve Anita. The woman's thoughtful and selfless, always considering the needs of the people she cares about. She's given Wraith her space, but has been available and just within reach when needed. Wraith doesn't understand how she treads the line so perfectly, but more than appreciates it nonetheless.

Wraith steps away from the couch to pad to the bathroom and start her shower. Thankfully with as hot as the water is, it's loosened her up enough to lessen the aching and clear her head. Finally, she steps out and dries her hair, then brushes her teeth, then finds a clean tank top and shorts from her bedroom. The entire process takes much longer than she imagined but does wonders for her stability. When she glances at a clock, she realizes she's been occupied for nearly an hour. World record in her book.

She returns to the living room as she's throwing her hair into a loose ponytail. The front door is wide open. Anita's in front of it, taking bags and a beverage carrier from a guy who looks past her and at Wraith. His eyes widen and face reddens, and he opens his mouth with a "h-holy shit, Wraith? Can I get your autograph, please?"

Anita shakes her head. "Thanks, kid, but not today." She then shuts the door with her leg and sets the bags on the coffee table.

Wraith holds back a laugh as she walks to lock the door. "I hope you at least gave him a nice tip."

"I did. Told him don't ask for autographs at nine in the morning."

The laugh breaks through at this point and Anita smiles in return, sitting down.

"Got you some tea they had. Chamomile. Figured you'd want to nap afterwards. You wanna eat now, or…?"

It's just now that Wraith remembers the leftover food from the previous day. It's all gone. The coffee table's clean and clear and there are no crumbs or boxes on the floor. It's spotless.

"Did you clean?" Wraith realizes how ridiculous of a question it is when she asks, but Anita nods and chuckles to herself.

"A bit."

Wraith purses her lips. "Bang, you didn't have to-"

"Stop," Anita says, waving a hand. "You know how I am. You need your rest anyway. You have a match in a few days, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"No 'but's. Come here." She outstretches a hand.

Wraith rolls her eyes and sighs as she pads to the couch and accepts it. Anita lies across the couch, her back against the pillow Wraith slept on. She pats the space between her thighs with her other hand and Wraith sits there, back resting against Anita's chest.

Wraith leans back instinctively and relaxes in the woman's arms. She shivers at the breath tickling her neck and the shell of her ear.

"You smell nice," Anita whispers.

"You smell better."

"Doubt it. Worked out this morning then threw cologne on to come here."

Wraith lightly slaps Anita's thigh with the back of her hand, earning her a light chuckle. "Stop. I know your post-workout rituals." Anita might be joking about not showering, but Wraith definitely smells the woodsy cologne. It's subtle but meshes well with her natural scent.

"How was your shower?"

Wraith sighs. A part of her desires to be standing back under the near-scalding water. Or if possible, sharing that space with Anita, but… she's fine with dreaming. "Better than I thought. Not a hundred percent, but I'll live."

Anita hugs her tighter. "Been worried about you, Rey. Didn't know what to think when I heard you passed out."

There's a twinge of guilt that pokes in Wraith's chest. She's an independent person and doesn't feel the need to have others worrying about her. But Anita? She's… different. So, so, so _different_. She could have said something, _anything_ , and Anita would have been there in a heartbeat to help because that's the type of person she is. Why needlessly worry her?

Wraith grabs Anita's arm, holds on to them for dear life. "I… I haven't been sleeping well lately. For the past month or two. Sometimes… not at all. Guess it finally caught up to me."

Anita stays silent, like she doesn't know what to say, Wraith guesses.

"I don't know why at all. Nothing's changed really. Nothing except…"

_Your relationship._

The Voices are cruel but truthful when they want to be.

"Us?" Anita breathes.

Perceptive.

"Do you… do you _like_ 'us'?"

The innocence of the question makes Wraith's heart swell. What they've been - what they've _done_ together - has been like nothing else she's experienced before. It just happened so naturally and gradually she barely noticed it coming to fruition.

Wraith can't even remember the last time she was in a meaningful relationship. Maybe before the memory loss, she supposes. Elliott approached her a long while back and they lasted all of two and half dates before Wraith had to cut it off. Funny guy, but way too clingy. She had to tell _someone_ about the experience and Anita was the only person willing to sit down and listen to her rant. They just… hung out more often after that.

They're so alike and so different. Wraith never wears her heart on her sleeve and neither does Anita. Yet, they communicate and mesh so well together regardless. They have their disagreements, plenty of those, but overall they know how to work out their issues, apologize when necessary, and help each other grow. It's almost too perfect.

And that's what scares her.

"Yeah. I do. Too much."

"Talk to me."

"I just… I don't know. I like what we have. I guess I'm afraid of fucking it up."

Anita hums into her hair. "Harsh words. Why do you think that?"

Wraith opens her mouth but can't form words or a coherent thought. She… doesn't even know. Anita gives her a quick squeeze, but she's still gathering her words. And then she thinks back to the labs, and the Voices, and every awful thing she's uncovered so far. And it finally hits her.

Her eyes sting with oncoming tears. "This is the best thing I've had since I ended up here. And… I just don't want to lose it. _Any_ of it. The thought of that keeps me up at night."

There it is. She huffs, trying to hide her quickening pulse and potential sniffles. Her attempt fails, she figures, as Anita caresses a hand across her arm.

"You want to know what I think?"

Wraith gives in and sniffs. "What?"

"I don't think you're that type of person. From what I've seen - from what I _know_ about you - you care. A lot. You always hold on to what's important to you; you fight for it. And you don't stop until you've broken every window and kicked down every door."

Wraith chuckles. She supposes there's some truth to that.

"I mean it. You ever watched your own post-match footage? I've seen you chase people down when you're one Peacekeeper shot away from winning a first class trip back to the respawn chamber. Because you care _that much_ about seeing it through to the end." Anita rubs her arm once more. "All I'm saying is give yourself some credit. You don't give up easily. And neither do I."

Wraith can't help the smile that graces her lips. She wants to break down and cry at Anita's words, but she's already embarrassed herself enough for the day. Instead, she gives Anita's arms a firm squeeze.

"Thanks."

"Now. Can we eat yet, or you got something else on your mind?" Anita says, pinching her ribs.

She flinches as she holds back a chuckle. "Can we just sit like this for a bit?"

Anita presses her lips to the nape of her neck and Wraith feels her smile. "Sure."

At the end of the day, Wraith feels horrible - aching muscles and slight headache with the onset of mild dehydration. She'll eat, eventually, and then take the longest nap of her life in Anita's arms post-Chamomile tea. Right now, though, she desires nothing more than to savor the moment of existing in this world and in this dimension with the woman she loves most.

**Author's Note:**

> Btw, my actual orientation headcanon for Wraith is lesbian, but went with pansexual here for that very, very brief Thing she had with Elliott.


End file.
